1. Field of the Invention
In general, the present invention relates to toy construction elements that are designed to interconnect into chains. More particularly, the present invention relates to toy construction elements that are designed to produce noise as they are connected into chains and manipulated.
2. Prior Art Description
Toy construction sets with plastic parts that interconnect are well known in the toy industry. Most such construction sets are designed with blocks that interconnect in a static manner. Such building blocks are exemplified by the Lego® lines of building blocks. Still other building sets interconnect parts at joints. In this manner, the parts can be interconnected to create flexible chains. Such building sets are exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 5,172,534 to Milner, entitled Chainable Building Blocks.
The construction toy design of U.S. Pat. No. 5,172,534 has been commercialized and has been sold under the trademark Kilxx® for the last two decades. The Klixx trademark is now owned by KMA Concepts, the applicant herein.
Much of the play value of the Klixx® line of toys is that the construction parts make an audible click as the individual parts are interconnected into chains. The interconnected parts also make audible clicks as the chains are manipulated and the individual parts of the chain move in relation to one another. However, the clicks made by the toys are subtle and have a relatively low volume. The clicks are therefore difficult to hear, especially if the toy is being played with in a noisy environment.
The present invention is an improvement upon the toy design shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,172,534. In the improvement, the structure of the toy elements is altered in order to enhance the acoustics of the toy. In this manner, the toy produces loud, clear noises when parts are either interconnected or manipulated while connected. The design that leads to the improved acoustics is described and claimed below.